Adoption Day

So many things I could talk about for today: Adoption is official, Tyson is showing more of himself—good and bad, Kacie continues to be a trooper, and Dan and I are exhausted. 3:00 am wake ups are my thing now…
Tyson slept all night. It’s sort of sad really. The last two nights I have held him til he’s almost asleep. I put him in his crib (which would never be used by anyone in the US—very sub-standard), and he cries and wails for about 10 seconds. Then it’s done, and he lays there. I lay beside him in my double bed, hard as a rock and 18 inches off the ground, and we lock eyes for about 5 seconds, then he looks around, then we lock eyes. I hold his hand through the crib, and he grabs my arm. I wonder what is going through his mind… I wanted to so badly to reach back into the crib and pick him up, but I know we all need our sleep, and this is best for now. He does take naps on the bed, but I am there to monitor it.
When I looked in Ty’s crib this morning, there he was, opposite of the way I laid him down, head up, looking around. That was about 5am. So we all got up, and my goodness, I forgot how long it takes to get ready with a two year old! All the things to remember! YIKES! We had our breakfast then quickly cleaned the room. Living out of suitcases is getting old—I can never find anything because every zip lock bag is looking the same.
Then it was off to the CAB office for the adoption. It was very easy. Our interview consisted of a few simple questions, we signed papers, gave gifts, and it was done. There were four families there. I was hoping to meet some of the nannies, but they did not come. One came yesterday, and we did get a picture with her and Ty. The director and an administrator were there, and I got to ask some questions. They were both very nice and kind and seemed to appreciate our gifts, and we explained what happened with our gift, and the director was very understanding. The director asked WHEN we would be brining Tyson back to visit. Not IF, WHEN. That caught me off guard, but we do have every intention of bringing him back, and the director said we are always welcome. In the picture, the administrator is on the left and the director is on the right.
Then we told the guide we had to go to Wal Mart. Kacie continues to be famous and have fans wherever she goes. As we were walking on the street, a little boy about age 4 came up to Kacie and slapped her in the stomach. The dad was so embarrassed and apologized over and over. We were just in shock, and of course it didn’t hurt K, but it was funny at the same time. So now I can say I’ve been to a Chinese Wal Mart, and it is nothing like ours at all. Very disconnected, and finding socks turned into a huge chore. Oh, and forget about finding a measuring cup or spoon of any kinds. Evidently, I brought over a can of formula that does not have a scoop! Doesn’t formula come with scoops? It did when K was a baby…ugh!
The rest of the day was nothing special, mostly in our room. After Ty’s nap, that’s when we really started seeing his personality. He smiles a lot, and it is beautiful. He is also quite the little Emperor! He has a temper, and he likes to throw toys—at people—so we’ll work on that. I am floating this fine line between promoting bonding and that I’m a safe person and the fact that he can’t throw toys and hurt people, so I have to take things away or say no. The last time he threw his toys, I took them away. He flung himself back and hit his head on the crib. He cried, but not too much because he knew he shouldn’t have done it—I could tell he knew. He does fling himself down when he’s mad. He will still play by Kacie, but he doesn’t like her yet. She is taking it well, thank goodness. She is still a wonderful help. He will let her put his bib on and take it off, and she can give him treats. But he won’t hold her hand or let her touch him at all. That will change, we told her to give him time. Oh, and he loves to have his teeth brushed! That was our first big smile this morning. That was a shock. Another shock was his weight. I was given VERY wrong measurements the last two times. Put it this way, in April I was told he was about 23 lbs, yet he's only 22lbs now. Hmmmmmm..... Even though he is certainly behind developmentally, Dan and I see all the potential in the world in this little guy. He is smart, there is no doubt, and he eats so much. As soon as his palate is fixed, the sky is the limit for this little guy. Right now, one step at a time.
We started Tyson on antibiotics, per doctor’s orders, so hopefully that will help him feel better. Tomorrow we are touring Nanjing in the morning, and our goal is to get Tyson back into a schedule. I’m tired, for sure! Thanks for following along, and thanks for the emails! I can’t wait for you all to meet Tyson. He’s going to melt your hearts. We love him so much already, it’s unbelievable.
Jolene